My Top 5 Tracks Of The Year – Will Shipley

2014 has been a massive year in the world of music, new stars such as Sam Smith and Iggy Azalea have taken the charts by storm, while more experienced veterans of the music world, such as Beyonce, have also dropped some excellent tunes. Earlier in the year at The Music Brewery’s inception we all chose our top 10 tracks of the year so far, this time we have chosen to cut that down to just our top 5 favourite songs from this year. It’s been incredibly hard to choose and I’m sure if you asked me again tomorrow it may be completely different, but here are my choices (for now!) for the top 5 songs of the year!

1. ScHoolboy Q – ‘Man Of The Year’ – Normally when I stumble upon a tune that I really love, I listen to it on repeat for about a month until I get to that dreaded point of killing the song by overplaying it. I started the same way with ‘Man Of The Year’ but somehow after nearly a year I find myself listening to it almost daily, still loving it just as much as I did to begin with. ScHoolboy Q explores his funkier side with this brilliant party tune, from his major label début Oxymoron which is also one of my favourite albums of the year. The video alone is deserving of a spot on here.

2. Skepta – ‘That’s Not Me feat. JME’ – This tune was an absolute no-brainer for me, showcasing Skepta in his element with a throwback to old-school grime. The eski-beat is as addictive as they come – the blocky synths accompanied by some epic bars – it’s no wonder Skepta cleaned up at the MOBO Awards earlier this year! I have not been able to stop listening to the track and it’s many remixes!

3. Freddie Gibbs & Madlib – ‘Thuggin’ – Coming from the magnificent joint album Piñata, ‘Thuggin’ is a masterpiece of a track and the perfect stage for both artists to show off their considerable chemistry. Freddie Gibbs is on point throughout painting a vivid picture of street life, while Madlib creates the perfect platform utilising an excellent sample that makes this tune an instant classic.

4. Kendrick Lamar – ‘i’ – Everybody has been waiting for what seems like an eternity for Kendrick Lamar’s follow up album to his 2012 classic Good Kid, M.A.A.D City, while we haven’t had the album we have been treated to the lead single ‘i’, a song that goes in a different direction to what anybody was expecting. The heavy sampling of the Isley Brothers is an excellent addition to Kendrick’s universe, putting another feather in the cap of this amazingly versatile artist. A crazy flow that talks about peace and harmony – is there anything Kendrick can’t do?

5. Childish Gambino – ‘Hot 97 Freestyle’ – I included a few freestyles in my previous top 10, but this one from Childish Gambino trumps them all. This is the most impressive freestyle I’ve had the pleasure of listening to. Gambino spits effortlessly over Hit Boy’s ‘Grindin’ My Whole Life’ going in hard as nails. He takes aim at the people who hate on him but secretly like him and how certain publications love his songs yet say his album is terrible. The most underrated rapper/singer out there, if Childish Gambino isn’t soon recognised as one of the best musicians out there I will start to lose faith in humanity.

So that’s my top 5 songs from this year amazing year of music, my highlight has to be the Childish Gambino and his freestyle. Let us know in the comment section or on Facebook/Twitter what would make your top 5 of the year!